Memories
by HeartBeatFailure-x
Summary: Itachi looks back on an important memory,before going to see Sasuke for the first time since leaving for Akatsuki. Will this memory that they both share stop them from completing their mission? ONESHOT! Not Uchiha-cest. R&R please *smile*


_"Itachi-niii! No splashing!" An six year old Sasuke covered his eyes as Itachi flicked watched from the large pool onto his younger brother playfully. "'Tachi-nii!" Itachi stopped and swam over to his brother, diving underneath the water perfectly, and appearing behind his brother in seconds, his long hair covering his entire face. Sasuke swam round in a 90 degree angle, and screamed. "The Grudge!" Itachi smirked and grabbed his younger brother around the waist, pretending to kidnap him._

_"Itachi! Be careful with him! I don't want either of you getting hurt!" Their mother called from the kitchen window. Itachi 'Hn'ed and Sasuke giggled._

_"Nii-san looks like the Grudge" Sasuke laughed and splashed his brother._

_"No splashing Sasuke…pool rules" Sasuke giggled, but didn't stop splashing. Itachi was quick to join in, and soon a full-on splashing fight occurred between the two Uchiha's._

_"You two! Dinner! Come on, get dried off, I'm sure you don't want cold dinner!" Itachi made a face to Sasuke, making it look like they would die if they had cold dinner. He fake gasped._

_"Sasuke, quick, get dried!" Sasuke actually gasped, and swam over to the edge of the pool, clambering out, with the help of his older brother, and running clumsily onto the porch, and grabbing his towel before running into the Uchiha mansion. Itachi smirked and moved his long hair out of his face, using his arms to help him out the pool, and getting his towel from the banister rail of the fencing of the porch. He followed Sasuke upstairs and dried off quickly, his still-wet hair clinging to his face and back._

_"Nii-san needs to get his hair cut short like mine!" Sasuke ran unpolitely into Itachi's room, arms outstretched wanting to be picked up. Itachi did so._

_"Now now, what have I told you about knocking?"_

_"Sasuke must knock before entering rooms" Itachi nodded and put his brother on his bed, once again brushing his hair out of his face. He grabbed his shirt from the back of his desk chair and put it on, going to get some shorts from his drawer. Sasuke crept up behind him, wrapping both his hands around Itachi's hair. "Sasuke thinks Itachi is from the fairy tales mother reads at night…You're Rapunzel" Sasuke giggled and Itachi smiled._

_"If I'm rapulzel…then you're one of Snow Whites seven dwarfs" Sasuke laughed harder and fell to the floor. Itachi stood up and changed into his shorts quickly, sitting down to put his socks on. Sasuke stopped laughing and came up once again behind Itachi._

_"Itachi, why wont you cut your hair?" Sasuke asked, once more running his fingers through his brothers hair carefully._

_"I like it long…you did…don't you any more?"_

_"I loke your hair long nii-san! It's different and unique! Mother taught me that word" He said proudly. "She says we are all unique" Itachi nodded and started putting on his other sock. Sasuke went back to fiddling with his brothers hair. A few seconds later, Itachi felt tugs and pulls at his hair, and even though he was dying to bat his brother away, he found himself unable to._

_"Sasuke, what are you doing?"_

_"One minute nii-san!" Sasuke said desperately, his tongue sticking out in concentration. "Kay!" Itachi stood up and laughed, scooping up his brother and walking downstairs to the dining room. Sasuke gasped._

_"We don't want cold tea do we nii-san?"_

_"No we don't Sasuke, no we don't" They both laughed slightly, and joined their parents at the dinner table. Itachi found himself running his hand through his fringe out of habit, but at that moment, he was unable to. He frowned and felt the back of his hair, noticing it was restrained in a hair tie._

_"Does nii-san like his hair?" Sasuke asked, spooning a bunch of food into his mouth proudly. Itachi smiled and nodded. "Will you wear it like that as long as you love me?" Itachi laughed, and nodded._

_Later that night, when everyone was asleep, Itachi ran a hand down his low pony tail. It wasn't high, because Sasuke couldn't reach, and so Itachi's hair was put together nicely in a low pony tail. He smiled and shook his head, shaking the fact that something so simple could hold so much love._

_The next day, Itachi found himself allowing his brother to do the same to his hair every morning, only doing it up better later on, because a five year old's hair-dressing skills weren't exactly perfect. It had become a habit for him to tie his hair up in this way, and although the memory may be forgotten by his brother, to Itachi, it was an engraved memory, that wouldn't leave his soul even if he died. He could hate or love his brother all he wanted, but he refused, to the present day, to have his hair in any other way than a low pony tail. Who gave a toss if it was girly. It was, as Sasuke said, unique._

**Present day…**

Itachi sat on the edge of his bed, his elbows on his knees, his fingers interlocked. He could never forget Sasuke, and even though he knew his brother wanted to kill him, and it hurt him to think so but still, even though he knew his brother wanted to kill him, he'd always love him. He got up off his bed and turned the radio on full blast, waking up Kisame, much to his dismay. Walking over to the wardrobe, he pulled out a mesh shirt, black pants, boxers, and his black compulsory cloak. He laid them on his bed, walking over to his dressing table to get his brush. Silently, he sat back on his bed, running the brush carefully through his hair. Once he found it was to his satisfaction, he took the red hair tie that Sasuke had always used, and tied it up on it's low pony tail, as it always was, is, and will be.

"Itachi, why the hell do you keep your hair long?"

"Cause someone I love liked it long…" Itachi said plainly.

"…I guess they liked it in a low pony tail too?"

"No, they're the one that thought it'd look best this way. Hurry up, we have a mission" He heard Kisame groan, but ignored it. He grabbed his clothes and went to the bathroom to get changed and washed. Once changed and washed, he went over the mission for the day, and smiled slightly. Today, for the first time since he'd left for the Akatsuki, he'd see his brother.

**Hours later…**

Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura stood in a straight line, staring at the horizon. A few seconds later, Sasuke's eyes were trained on the two Akatsuki members coming towards them. More specifically, they were trained on his brother. He gave a brief smile before stuffing his hands in his pockets. His brother had kept his hair the same as Sasuke liked it. Long, and in a low pony tail. Sasuke frowned. "He still cares…"

i"Does nii-san like his hair?" Sasuke asked, spooning a bunch of food into his mouth proudly. Itachi smiled and nodded. "Will you wear it like that as long as you love me?" Itachi laughed, and nodded. /i Sasuke shook his head. They had a mission. Their mission was to kill Akatsuki, like petals on a flower. He had to kill Itachi, and nothing would stop that. He had a job to do. He had earned the respect of the people in Konoha, and some old memory that he had from when he was five was most definitely iNOT/i going to stop him from not completing this mission. Today. Akatsuki would lose two members. Today, he would lose a brother. Today, his life would change. Today…half of his heart would leave him.

**AN: What'd you think?**


End file.
